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Following the ambulance crash of the previous chapter, detective Sebastian Castellanos awakens to find himself strapped to a gurney being wheeled down a long hallway, his vision distorted all the while. As the gurney reaches its destination inside an operating theater, Sebastian looks up to see a monstrous-looking creature pouncing on him, only to suddenly wake up inside an asylum cell with a splitting headache. As he gathers his bearings, the detective trudges towards the room door where he is greeted by a strange nurse, who tells him that he is safe within this haven, but must stabilise himself if he is to last long in this world. She then takes him to a small room where he is seated onto an unusual chair, upon which an apparatus suddenly springs on top of his head. Sebastian is then stabilised with a small dose of Green Gel after a short bout of struggling, whereupon he is blinded by a white light.

As he gathers his vision, Sebastian finds himself back inside the ambulance, now upended and burning. Quickly crawling outside, he follows the trail ahead towards a lake-side village, encountering a deranged Oscar Connelly along the way which he defeats. As he nears the village, Sebastian runs into a confused Leslie Withers, who speeds off into the distance despite Sebastian's offers of help. Following in the boy's direction, Sebastian reaches the village where a man is turned into a hideous creature after looking into the beacon of a lighthouse in the distance. As he considers his plan forward, more of the same creatures start appearing throughout the village, though Sebastian manages to reach the back gate against all odds. As he exits the gate, Sebastian carries on forward only to alert a large mob of monsters, who chase him onto the nearby bridge. Cornered and without an adequate means to defend himself, Sebastian jumps off the edge of the bridge as the creatures look on.

After waking up inside the asylum cell, move towards the door and inspect the small window to trigger a conversation with Tatiana Gutierrez, who will then open the door to let the player outside. Don't leave the room just yet, as there are two bottles of Green Gel available to collect here, one of which is in the toilet. Check the desk to find the [ ★ BODIES FOUND ] newspaper article as well. After that, leave the room through the door and walk up to the reception counter for the Saving tutorial. Save the game here is required to progress. Afterwards, follow nurse Tatiana to the upgrade chair at the end of the hall, be sure to check behind it for the first [ ★ MAP FRAGMENT ], then sit down on it and press the upgrade button when prompted. A short cutscene then plays, taking Sebastian back to the forest.

After crawling out of the burning wreck, Sebastian will have been badly hurt, but a Syringe located nearby will bring him back up to fighting shape as taught by the Healing tutorial. A mangled stretcher nearby also has some Green Gel on it. As the player moves forward, they will reach a pair of crates sitting on a flat rock, which can be smashed as per the Melee tutorial to gain some Gel, though the current goal is to reach the lit up area in the distance. Here, Sebastian will get his hands on the Lantern, which gives him a handy light source during his journey. After a short cinematic of Sebastian falling down a cliff (no going back), approach the lit tent to acquire the Handgun and encounter the game's first enemy, an old partner that isn't who he used to be. Fighting him or fleeing is up to the player's discretion, though the tent he was in has some minor loot in it as well as some boxes.

Enter the tunnel ahead of the tent and take a left to find some Gel past the cart. Backtrack a bit and move towards the lit up area to find Leslie Withers past a tripwire. After a short cutscene, the game will display a tutorial on how to disarm the tripwire to gain Trap Parts. Now that the tripwire is disabled, walk out of the tunnel. The next area has a cart that one can loot for some Gel and possibly ammo, along with a dead body for the matches tutorial. It is not necessary to burn the body to progress. Afterwards, proceed down the path to a small shack along the way with music coming from the inside. This is a save station, which contains a mirror for Sebastian to return to the Safe Haven at any time. Go through the door to watch a short cutscene involving nurse Tatiana, then grab the [ ★ JOURNAL OF SEBASTIAN CASTELLANOS - NOVEMBER 2004 ] and some Gel off the nearby counter and interact with the mirror. Save here if one feels like it, then check the news stand for the [ ★ SERIAL KILLER ON THE LOOSE ] article and the opposite notice board for the [ ★ LESLIE WITHERS ] missing persons poster. Use the chair to spend collected Gel on upgrades if desired, then exit the Safe Haven when done.

Back on the path, keep walking forward until a short cutscene plays where Leslie gets chased into a shack by a Haunted, which begins the Stealth Kill tutorial. It is vital to have the lantern shut off and Sebastian crouched down for this to work, otherwise the enemy will spot him. Kill the Haunted as instructed and go through the shack to reach a large iron gate. Check the wall to the left of the gate to find a goddess statue, which can be smashed to reveal the chapter's first [ ★ KEY ]. Hold on to it as it will become useful later, then head through the gates to witness the transformation of a villager into a Haunted. Now here's where the hard part begins, as the village is riddled with the Haunted and traps, both of which Sebastian must maneuver around to reach the crank gate at the back end. This is also where progress for the À la Corvo achievement start counting, so the player must not kill any of the Haunted they see if they're trying to unlock it.

Assuming the player is not going for the achievement, the two Haunted ahead can be killed with either Sneak attacks, with the Handgun, or by setting the hay bales in front of Sebastian on fire and kicking them at the creatures. Alternatively, the one closest to the player can be lured away with the Bottle at Sebastian's feet, or stunned with a well-aimed throw to open them up for a Sneak kill which will net the Bloody Bar Brawl achievement. It would be wise to try and take out both Haunted, as there is a [ ★ LAKESIDE TOWN NOTE ] by the bonfire and some goods in the house, which include matches, Gel, and a tripwire to disarm for parts. Return to the main path to progress when done.

Not too far up ahead will be a fork in the road with a Haunted patrol. Either kill or move past him. Take the right path here first to secure some collectible and supplies. Walk up the path to the nearby house, though be aware of the lone Haunted that patrols the front yard, which can be easily killed to gain some Gel and a Torch, which will become handy later. Enter the house once the coast is clear to find boxes to smash, and a tripwire in the next hall to disarm. There's some pistol ammo on the shelf past the tripwire, and some more in the room beyond, as well as some Gel on the table. Notice the boarded up room with the bigger Gel jar, the corpse inside is not actually dead, and will spring up to attack Sebastian once the planks are down. Dispose of him to loot the place in peace. There's a morgue [ ★ KEY ] in the little box on the old-fashioned sink in this room and a [ ★ MAP FRAGMENT ] on the couch in the one adjacent. Afterwards, simply backtrack to the intersection to carry on.

The house just up the middle of the road has a few surprises. First off, a lone Haunted will be patrolling back and forth around the bonfire out front, while the house itself is rigged with some tripwires and the area surrounding it has bear traps. Pick any route and move on towards the gate at the far side. Some Haunted will likely notice the player around this point, so be prepared for a fight. Afterwards, move up to the gate but don't start cranking yet, as the two bodies nearby are actually Haunted playing dead. Burn them with a match to open the gate in peace.

Past the gate is a path leading to a stone bridge, though to the left of the road is a small field where a small mob of Haunted are busy feasting on corpses. Avoid them by going right instead, then crouch down and hug the low wall here until the player reaches the small shack on the side, which can be searched for some supplies and a [ ★ MAP FRAGMENT ]. As the player nears the foot of the bridge, a lone Haunted will be blocking the way, which can be killed or ran/sneaked past. The large mob will be alerted either way, who will immediately begin chasing after Sebastian. As soon as this happens, immediately sprint to the other end of the bridge where a short cutscene will play to end the chapter.

Using Green Gel during the mandatory tutorial at the beginning of the level won't void the It Is What It Is achievement, though spending any more after that point will.

Players attempting to unlock À la Corvo will find it easier to accomplish on a New Game+, preferrably with the Agony Crossbow loaded with Flash bolts to stun the Haunted that will attack when one has to turn the crank to open the exit gate. Upgrading the bolt's duration can be a big help.